In general, commonly used portable devices have various functions including, for example, a video call function, information input/output function, data storage function as well as a simple voice call function.
With recent diversification in the functionality of portable devices, in particular, portable devices (hereinafter, also referred to as portable communication devices) have been provided with a variety of applications. In addition to a call function, specifically, recent portable devices may function as a storage medium containing personal information or other credit purchase information and also, may exhibit even somewhat complex functions, such as a picture or moving image capturing function, a music or moving image file reproduction function, a game playing function, a broadcast receiving function, and the like. In addition, multimedia devices that combine the aforementioned functions have been developed.
Portable devices are provided with various shapes of connection modules, which correspond to various connectable devices required to implement the above described various additional functions. Examples of these connectable devices and connection modules may include USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports for data reception/transmission and other input/output ports for connection of input/output units for signal interface, such as earphones, remote controllers and televisions.
Korean Patent Application No. 2007-0054532 (entitled “Connection Module for Mobile Communication Device”) discloses a connection module in the form of an integral combination of two kinds of connection modules, in which different connection terminal units are installed to upper and lower portions of a single case, so as to allow different plugs to be connected to a single connection module.
With the integral configuration of the connection module, a slimmer connection module, which can properly conform to a slimmer mobile communication device, can be realized. However, currently, a slim plug suitable for use with the slimmer connection module is not present.
Specifically, although the size of a plug may be more or less reduced by reducing the number or size of terminals used in the plug, it is difficult to achieve a considerable reduction in the size of the plug equal to that in the integral configuration of the connection module.
Moreover, a single portable device may be used with several kinds of plugs on a per function basis and therefore, there exists a need for a plurality of plugs having different functions.
For example, in consideration of the fact that a variety of plugs having different functions, such as a USB plug to be connected to a USB connection module, an input/output plug to be connected to an input/output connection module, and the like, are utilized, a user may suffer from inconvenience in having to carry all various kinds of plugs for use with a single portable device.